


Distracted

by MrsLittletall



Category: Dark Souls (Video Games), Dark Souls I
Genre: A bit of vomiting, M/M, a bit of blood, concussion, my dumb humour
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-30
Updated: 2018-05-30
Packaged: 2019-05-16 05:29:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,964
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14805260
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrsLittletall/pseuds/MrsLittletall
Summary: The dragon slayer got distracted and had an embarrassing accident. Why is everyone so interested what happened to him now?





	Distracted

**Author's Note:**

> This piece was inspired by a writing prompt from https://writingprompts365.tumblr.com/  
> I hope you all enjoy.

Ornstein was walking down some stairs, when he saw the master walking by. His head automatically turned into his direction, admiring every detail, the armour he wore, him confidently holding the sword spear, the way he moved forwards and how his long white streaks of hair wavered among his crown. 

The next thing Ornstein knew, was, that his foot suddenly did step on thin air instead on the next step. And before he could even react, he had already fallen and was met with a sharp pain in his head, that made some stars appear before his inner eye. He just sat there for a while dumbfounded. Then he realized that something warm was dripping down his temple. He pulled off his helmet and raised a hand to see how bad it was. The red liquid on his gauntlet told him that he was definitely bleeding. ...How embarrassing! He had fallen down the stairs and hit his head on the wall because he had been distracted by fawning over the master. It would be better if nobody would ever know of this.

“Ornstein, what happened? You are bleeding!” Artorias had rushed to his side. 

Of course Artorias had the perfect timing right now. Ornstein quickly tried to think of an excuse, but the pain and the dizziness made it hard to concentrate. And the fact that he was obviously sitting bleeding in front of some stairs made it clear, what happened. And he certainly wasn't saying something like: “I was so distracted by my boyfriend walking by, who happens to be the prince of the country on a side note, that I fell down the stairs cause I wasn't looking.” So the only thing he brought out was: “I... got distracted.”

“So distracted that you fell down the stairs?”, Artorias offered his hand which Ornstein took without thinking about and was pulled back on his feet by his friend, which made the wound protest. “Ow.”, he hissed and pressed his hand against the wound. The blood was running down his face and in his eye, which he quickly closed. He raised the other hand to wipe the blood off when Artorias was holding a handkerchief in front of him.

“Press this on the wound while we go to the infirmary.” 

“Do we have to go right now?”, Ornstein complained. “It is not that bad. I have to go and assign the silver knights to their tasks.” Ornstein took the offered handkerchief and held it on the wound though.

“They can wait a bit.”, Artorias said and took Ornstein by the left arm that wasn't occupied. “With a wound like that, we should get you to the infirmary right away.” He bowed down to pick up Ornstein's helmet and spear and then practically dragged the dragon slayer along to the infirmary. Ornstein didn't miss the opportunity to complain to Artorias loudly about this decision. He hated it when his usual daily routine got interrupted. 

After they arrived at the infirmary, Artorias knocked on the door and awaited the response that they could enter now. The wolf knight practically flung the door open, entered with Ornstein in tow and forced him with affirmative but also gentle strength to sit down on the bed. 

“Ornstein has fallen down some stairs and now has a wound on his head that needs to get patched up.”, he proclaimed loudly. 

“Artorias! Why did you have to explain it in detail?”, Ornstein scolded his friend, why did he had to say that out aloud? He opened his mouth to speak further,but had to clasp a hand over it, suddenly feeling nauseous.

The physician who was in charge today came over: “Would you let me take a look at the wound please?” 

Artorias, who had sat down on the bed next to Ornstein, said: “Wait a moment. Ornstein, aren't you feeling well?” He apparently had noticed Ornstein's discomfort. 

Ornstein didn't want to answer or even moving the head at all. He feared that any movement would get him to puke. So he just kept sitting there quietly, trying to breath in and out regularly, hoping that the nausea would go away. 

“He has hit his head, yes?”, the physician asked which Artorias nodded too. She vanished into a corner of the room and came back with a bucket which she handed to Artorias: “Nausea is a common symptom for a concussion, which often occurs after a blow to the head. Hold this in case he needs it.” She then went in another corner of the room and rummaged around, apparently collecting some things to properly patch up the wound. 

Artorias had laid his arm around Ornstein's shoulder and stroked his back in a comforting manner which the dragon slayer barely felt through the armour. He still was grateful for the gesture and after a while the nausea subdued. He removed the hand from his mouth and said: “I feel better now. You can take a look at the wound.”

The physician came back over and took a look at the wound: “This bleeds quite a bit, looks like a laceration. I will need to stitch this up. But first, we need to clean it.” She proceeded to clean the wound with a piece of cloth and asked: “How did you manage to fall down the stairs, Sir Ornstein? That isn't an accident that would be expected of you.” 

“Uh...”, Ornstein started and then grunted in pain: “Ow.” That thing really hurt.

“He said, he was distracted.”, Ornstein could hear Artorias say next to him, which got the wolf knight a poke into his side.

“Distracted by what?”, the physician asked and prepared the suture. 

“Can we.. talk later?”, Ornstein asked. The pain made the nausea return. A part of him noticed that Artorias arm was still laying on his back in reassurance and comfort. 

“Of course.”, the physician said and proceeded to stitch up the wound. Each pulling of the suture made Ornstein hiss in pain. 

“It is almost over.” the physician said while gently cleaning the freshly stitched wound. She finished the treatment with applying a bandage around Ornstein's head and then gave a wet cloth so that he could clean the blood out of his face and gauntlet. 

“You show symptoms of a concussion, so it would be better for you to rest today.”, she said to Ornstein. 

“Noted.”, Ornstein simply said and got up after he had finished wiping the blood away. He didn't plan to get any rest today. He took his spear, staggered over to the door and reached for the handle only to completely miss it. 

“Definitely a concussion.”, the physician said. “You shouldn't wear your helmet today to take pressure of your head. And I would like to see you back here in three days so that we can check on the healing process of your wound.” 

“Alright, can I go now?”, Ornstein complained and reached for the handle once more, this time managing to open the door. 

“I am sorry, he seems to be in a hurry to get to his room.”, Artorias said and rushed over to Ornstein, the lion helmet under his arm. “I better escort him.” The both knights left the infirmary without saying another word. 

“Give me that.”, Ornstein said and tried to snatch his helmet out of Artorias hands, but the wolf knight promptly held it out of Ornstein's range. Of course it wouldn't be a problem for him to just jump up and snatch it, but with his dizziness he didn't want to. 

“You aren't supposed to wear your helmet today.”, Artorias scolded Ornstein. “Besides...” He lowered the helmet and it showed a noticeable dent in the metal. 

“Oh, come on, really?”, Ornstein moaned. “This needs getting repaired...” He was less than thrilled about this discovery. “But this will have to wait for later, I have to get to the silver knights.”

“Shouldn't you go to your room to rest?”, Artorias asked, following his friend. 

“I just hit my head. I don't think that this injury will hinder me getting my duties done today.”, Ornstein said in a casual tone. He had kept fulfilling his duties with injuries worse than this. Although, he hoped, the dizziness would subdue soon. He felt like he was walking in zigzags. 

“You are literally walking in zigzags.”, Artorias said. 

Oh, then it didn't only feel like it. “I just feel a bit dizzy, that surely won't last the whole day. You don't have to follow me around.”, Ornstein said to Artorias, but the wolf knight insisted on staying with him. Eventually they reached the already waiting silver knights. 

“Good morning.”, Ornstein started. “I apologize for making you wait.” 

He could hear the silver knights whispering to each other. One of them had the courage to speak up: “Uh, Captain... Would you allow us to ask the question what happened to your head?” 

Ornstein could see out of the corner of his eye, how Artorias opened his mouth and shut him up with a quick kick at the shin. The wolf knight closed his mouth and slumped a bit next to his friend while Ornstein answered the question: “That isn't important. What is important right now is to get you assigned to your shifts.” 

Ornstein spent a while to assign the silver knights to their today's shifts like patrol duty, guard duty, cleaning duty and which of them were expected to show up for training in the afternoon. After they all had their tasks and scattered out to fulfill their duties, Artorias asked: “Wouldn't it be the right thing to go and rest now?”

Ornstein shook his head and regretted the motion right away. He raised a hand to press against the wound, clutching his spear under his arm. “I plan to check if everything in the cathedral is in order this morning.”, he said between clenched teeth. 

“Fine. But I won't let you go alone in this state.”, Artorias stated. “I still wonder what got you so distracted that you fell down the stairs. I think it is better to make sure this doesn't happen a second time.”

Ornstein grumbled a bit at this statement. Seemed like he had Artorias on his toes this day. At least he wasn't actively trying to drag him into bed this time. The dragon slayer just turned around without a word and started the patrol through the cathedral. He could hear Artorias footsteps following him. 

“Which places do you plan to go check out?”, Artorias wanted to know.

“I plan to check on the giant blacksmith, the great hall, the throne room, the silver knights rooms and the dungeon.”, Ornstein sighed at the last one. “I don't look forward to this, but it has to be done.” His bad relationship with Smough, the executioner was infamous in the cathedral. Ornstein fell silent after he answered Artorias question and the both of them walked next to each other in without saying a word. 

On their way to check up on the giant blacksmith, Ciaran crossed their way. She took one glance at Ornstein and then said: “Have you two dueled again?”

“It isn't my fault this time, I swear!”, Artorias promptly said. Ornstein nodded in agreement and then had to hold the wound again, which made his spear fall down. He should try and avoid motions like this today. He cursed his preference to not talk when it could be avoided. What didn't help was, that he started to feel nauseous again and his other hand raised to cover up his mouth, which made his helmet join his spear on the floor with a clank. 

“Seems like you aren't feeling too well.”, Ciaran said. “I guess Artorias was about to get you to your room. But maybe we should sit him down first, before there is a mess to clean up.” That last words were directed at Artorias, who laid his arm around Ornstein's shoulder and gently led him to sit down on the stairs leading to the giant blacksmith. 

“That has happened earlier in the infirmary too.”, Artorias said and sat down next to Ornstein. “The physician said that he has a concussion.” 

“I am not surprised, it looks like you have hit your head quite hard.”, Ciaran said to Ornstein. “How did this happen?” 

“Oh, he fell down some stairs.”, Artorias explained, which prompted Ornstein to hit his friend with a weakened lightning spear, which nearly knocked the wolf knight down.

“I shouldn't have done this.”, he mumbled and slumped down, breathing heavily, trying to subdue the nausea. 

“I am sorry, Ornstein, I thought you were fine with Ciaran knowing...”, Artorias said.

Ciaran was just standing there grinning. “Ornstein, that was marvelous.”, she said. Artorias grumbled a “not for me” under his breath, having gotten his balance back very soon. Ciaran joined Artorias and Ornstein by sitting down on the stairs too. “But seriously, how did you manage to fall down the stairs? I have seen you land safely while jumping off a dragon which was 10 meters up in the air.”, she wanted to know. 

Ornstein waited a few more moments for the nausea to go away before answering: “I was distracted...”

“Distracted by what? Did your crush walk by or something?”, Ciaran jokingly asked, which made Ornstein visibly wince. How could she guess the exact thing that had happened so precisely? Artorias and Ciaran both didn't miss his reaction.

“Wait... you don't mean...”, Artorias started. Ciaran had to turn around, trying to hide her laughter. She quickly vanished behind a corner, but her suppressed chuckling could still be heard. It also infected Artorias, who quickly got up and vanished into the same corner, joining Ciaran and her laughter. 

“I have such good friends!”, Ornstein shouted from his position up on the steps. “I don't even need enemies anymore!”, he grumbled. 

The both knights came out of the corner, wiping away tears. “I am sorry, Ornstein.”, Ciaran said. Artorias continued for her: “That was just too cute.” 

“Please promise me to not tell this anyone.”, Ornstein said, his face vanishing into his hands. “The whole situation is embarrassing enough without people knowing the reason for it.” 

“We won't say anything.”, Ciaran promised. 

“I promise too.”, Artorias said. 

“Now, that this is taken care off, shall I help you getting him to his room?”, Ciaran asked, but Ornstein stood up. 

“Wait a minute, Ciaran, I am not planning on going to my room. We were on our way to check up on various places in the cathedral.”, he said and strode down the stairs, after he had picked up his helmet and spear, hissing and cursing at the pain that ocurred while he was bowing down.

“Are you sure, you are up to it?”, the assassin asked but stepped to the side so that he could pass her on his way down. “Just make sure to look in front of you when walking down the steps.”, she grinned and was met with a glare of Ornstein. As Artorias walked by, Ornstein noticed, that the woman whispered something into his friend's ear, but he couldn't make out the words. Whatever, he didn't want any more delays now and promptly made his way to the room where the giant blacksmith resided. 

Upon arriving at the giant blacksmith, Ornstein gave his helmet to him. “I need some repairs.”, he said. The giant blacksmith surveyed the damage and then told Ornstein that he could get his order at the usual time, which was ordinarily in the evening. The giant blacksmith had the habit to queue every order he got and do them one at a time, so it was the norm to get any order at the end of the day. Ornstein was a bit bitter about this. He would have preferred to get his helmet back on right away. He turned around and walked through the door outside with his next goal in mind. Artorias followed him. 

“I know you don't like this, but I think it is actually better. After all, the physician said you shouldn't wear your helmet today.”, he said. 

“I know.”, Ornstein sighed. “I just feel naked without my full armour on.” 

“I get this. This thing has kind of become a second skin.”, Artorias said while looking at his own armour. “I am sure, it won't be that bad, it is only a day.”

“I guess...”, Ornstein still felt gloomy. But there wasn't anyone he could blame but himself. This accident had been entirely his own fault. And that was what made him mad. How could he let himself get so distracted? He needed to take better care where he would set down his feet from now on. 

From the giant blacksmith it was only a short walk to the great hall. Most of the time, it was empty, expect for the occasional silver knights patrolling around. The hall was mostly used for festivals and sometimes for duels when the weather outside wasn't playing along. At the moment, it was supposed to be empty, so Ornstein was pretty surprised to see the reason for his accident there, staring at the statue of his father. 

“Good morning, Prince Gwynfor!”, Artorias said cheerfully and waved. Ornstein quickly took cover behind Artorias before the master turned around. 

“Oh, good morning, Artorias. And good morning, Ornstein.”, he said. Ornstein muttered “Damn.” behind Artorias back and stepped into sight: “How did you notice me?”, he asked. 

“I can still see your spear, you know.”, the master said. “Woah, what happened to your head?”, he asked after taking a closer look at his student. “Artorias, haven't we talked about that?” He stared at the wolf knight with a deeply reproachful look.

“It wasn't my fault this time, I swear.”, Artorias quickly said. Ornstein nodded to confirm Artorias words and got hit with a sharp pain in the wound again. 

“Ow...”, he quietly said and pressed his left hand against the bandage. 

“Are you feeling alright? Do you want to sit down?”, the master asked, sounding concerned. 

“It just hurts. It will be over soon.”, Ornstein said, removing his hand from his head. 

“Are you sure? You have felt sick twice already.”, Artorias asked, which got him a kick against the shin from Ornstein.

“I am only worrying about you, you know.”, Artorias complained when the master stepped closer. 

“Would you explain to me how you got this wound?”, the master asked.

Ornstein averted his gaze. What should he answer to that? That he had been so ingested in the beauty of his boyfriend that he forgot to check where he had to set his feet? It would be so embarrassing to tell him even when they were alone, but he surely couldn't when Artorias was around, because the two kept their relationship a secret. He could feel his face turning red just at the thought of all this.

Luckily the master was quick to register his distress and said: “It's fine, you can tell me later what happened.” He bowed down and felt Ornstein's forehead. “But are you sure, you are alright? You look like you got yourself a fever? How severe is this injury?”

Ornstein felt his face turn even redder at the master's touch. He tried to collect his thoughts and the memory of the time in the infirmary that seemed to have slip away by now when Artorias answered in his place: “A laceration which had to get stitched with three stitches and a concussion.” 

“And with that you are walking around like nothing happened?”, Master Gwynfor said. “But you know, everyone knows their own body the best. Just make sure to actually rest when you notice that you can't go on anymore.” 

“I will.”, Ornstein said. “It isn't that bad actually, just a little pain and dizziness. I would be only bored lying around in my room.” Ornstein wanted to get this conversation into another direction and asked: “Why were you staring at the statue of Lord Gwyn, master?”

“The master turned around, looking at the statue of his father. “Oh.. It is just... It is expected from me to fulfill his role one day and I was asking myself if I am fit for this...”, he said. 

“I am sure you are the best to fulfill this role, mylord.”, Artorias suddenly said. 

“Why thank you for your faith, Artorias, but still... these are quite some shoes to fill...”, Master Gwynfor said with a worried tone in his voice. 

“But you aren't even wearing any shoes.”, Artorias said which was clearly meant as some dumb joke (cause the master always wore sandals) and made Ornstein clasp a hand against his head, which was a mistake. “Ow.”, he hissed and slumped a bit. 

“Sorry Ornstein, I only tried to lighten the mood.”, Artorias said.

Master Gwynfor bowed down to Ornstein and whispered something into his ear: “Would you come to my room once you are done with your duties? And please take care of yourself, I don't want to see you collapse.” He then raised himself back up and said out loud: “I don't want to distract you two any further while carrying out your duties. Please, move on.” With that words, Master Gwynfor left the great hall and the two knights alone. 

“Are you sure you are fine? Your face is totally red. Maybe you really have a fever?”, Artorias asked. 

“I am fine.”, Ornstein dismissed the question. “Let us just continue with the patrol. The throne room is up next.” The both of them went to one of the elevators that lead to the upper floor of the great hall, where the throne room was located. 

To their surprise, they ran right into their Lord Gwyn who had been approaching the throne room from the other side. Both knights instantly fell on their knees. “Good morning, my lord.”, they said in unison. “That wasn't a sane thing to do.”, Ornstein added in a hushed voice and had to clasp a hand at this mouth again, nausea returning. 

“Good morning, Artorias. Good morning, Ornstein.”, Lord Gwyn said and glanced at Ornstein's bandaged head. “I thought I made clear that your little duels shouldn't resist in injury anymore.”, he scolded them. 

“Oh no, this wasn't Artorias fault this time!”, Ornstein quickly said. “It was entirely my own fault. I had an accident this morning.” All this talking wasn't good for his nausea and he had to try his best to suppress a gag. His hand covered his mouth once more. 

“Which kind of accident?”, the lord asked. 

“Being distracted by your son that was walking by and I am in a secret relationship with that you don't know about and falling down the stairs because of that.” Ornstein's thought raced. He clearly couldn't tell the truth to his lord, but he also couldn't lie. He took a few deep breathes hoping that the nausea would go away and said the only thing he was able to admit: “I fell down some stairs.”

“Well, take better care in the future. Accidents that can be avoided shouldn't even happen in the first place.”, Lord Gwyn said. “What where you two doing here by the way?”

“Checking on the throne room.” Ornstein answered. “I know this should have long been done, but everything got delayed because of my accident. I deeply apologize.”, he bowed before Lord Gwyn and then turned to Artorias: “Let's check if everything in there is in order.” After a quick check if the throne room was as abandoned as it should be, they returned to Lord Gwyn. “Everything is safe, mylord.”, Ornstein said. “We will continue with our duties now.” 

“Take care to not fall down anymore stairs.”, the lord said as a goodbye, which made Ornstein's face turn red again, how embarrassing hearing that from his lord. 

“I will be wary of stairs for now.”, he said and basically fled the scene, Artorias having some trouble following him. Ornstein had done his best to suppress the nausea, but it felt like he couldn't hold it back anymore.

“I am going to be sick.”, he managed to say and then made a run for the nearest privy which luckily wasn't far away. Artorias caught up with him shortly afterwards and kept Ornstein's ponytail out of the way while he was vomiting. It didn't last long though. Ornstein raised his head and then sat down on the wall, his head was pounding with pain. 

“I should get you to your room now.”, Artorias said. “You clearly don't feel well.” 

“No.”, Ornstein snapped. “I just need a moment.” 

“I really would prefer to drag you into bed, but I know you won't stay put and just leave the moment I let you out of my sight.”, Artorias said. “You are far to stubborn when it comes to this. Let us make a deal: If you get sick another time, then you go straight into bed.” 

Ornstein slowly stood up. “Fine.”, he said. The pounding in his head had fortunately gotten better. “The nausea has gotten better now anyway.” He took a flask he was carrying around with him to clean out his mouth. “Let us check on the silver knight quarters now.”

Upon arriving at the silver knight quarters, Ornstein could spot two of the silver knights who were on cleaning duty sweeping the floor and dusting off the furniture. They were talking with each other.

“Maybe he got that injury by another duel with Artorias?”

“I don't think they have even dueled lately. It is more likely that he got it while sparring with Prince Gwynfor.” 

“Or maybe he said something to upset Lady Ciaran and she threw one of her daggers at him?”

“He would have need to stay at the infirmary if that would have been the case, her daggers are quite poisonous.” 

“Maybe it was another quarrel with the executioner and he snapped and hit him with his hammer?”

“... Do you really think that someone would survive a direct hit on the head with this...? It was probably something banal like him falling down the stairs or something.”

“I have a hard time imagining the captain falling down the stairs, to be honest.”

“You just want to have an awesome story behind this injury, right?”

Ornstein had heard enough and couldn't bear the image of the widely grinning Artorias beside him anymore. He cleared his throat and stepped closer: “Getting to your cleaning duties at the last minute, I see?”

The two silver knights froze and then saluted at the sight of Ornstein. “Oh, captain. Sorry, we are a bit late with this.”, one of them said. 

“Well, it is fine, as long as you get your duties done.”, Ornstein said. “Is everything in order here?” Ornstein let his gaze wander around the quarters, it felt like quite some time since he had stayed in there too. Artorias besides him voiced it out loud.

“Looking at this makes me so nostalgic.”, he said. 

“We don't have any trouble here.”, the silver knights said. “Everything is going quite neatly.”

“This is good to hear.”, Ornstein said. “That was all. Keep up the good work. And stop trying to figure out how I got this injury.” Ornstein turned around and left the scene after he delivered the last sentence. Artorias caught up with him. 

“I could see them physically cringe. They surely are spending the rest of the day trying to find out when we started eavesdropping.”, he grinned. 

“Good, that is far better than them trying to guess what actually happened.”, Ornstein said. “Only the dungeon left now. “ He groaned. “Ugh, really not looking forward to this...” The chance that he would run into the executioner was great down there and he really didn't want to be seen like this from him. . 

“Then let us just quickly hop into it and then leave.”, Artorias suggested. 

“Let's just get this over with.”, Ornstein sighed and the two knights made their way to the dungeon. After they arrived at the stairs going down, Ornstein bend forwards a little trying to hear if the executioner was near. He couldn't hear the distinctive heavy footsteps, so he set a foot on the first step and proceeded to carefully descending the stairs. He could hear Artorias footsteps following him.

“You seem to feel better. You didn't seem to be in pain recently.”, the wolf knight said. 

“It still hurts, but I got used to it by now.”, Ornstein answered. That was true, the pain had mostly dulled and when he avoided sudden movements it wasn't acting up again. They arrived at the end of the stairs. A silver knight was standing guard there. Ornstein waved and talked to them: “Is everything down here alright?”

“Good morning, captain. Good morning, Sir Artorias.”, the silver knight shouted over to them far too loud. “Everything down here is in order!” 

Ornstein made a denying gesture back to them, hissing under his breath: “Not so loud.” 

“Did you say something, captain? I couldn't hear you! And by the way, what happened to your head?”, the silver knight shouted. 

“I wanted you to tone down the volume!”, Ornstein shouted back, now at the same intensity. But it was too late . He could hear the footsteps of the executioner approaching. “Oh no.”, Ornstein said, slumping down. Soon Smough, the executioner, came into sight, unmistakable because he was wearing his grotesque looking armour. At the sight of the knights he stopped, seeming to be surprised. Ornstein had the impression that the executioner's gaze was on his head. 

“Hmph.”, he said. “I always wanted to smash some sense into your head, but it seems someone has beaten me to it.”

That ticked Ornstein off. “What is that supposed to mean?”, he growled, taking a step closer. 

“You perfectly know what it is supposing to mean.”, Smough said and took a step closer himself. Ornstein was about to opening his mouth having another response ready, but got dragged away by Artorias before he could even say anything. 

“I am sorry that we have to leave now, but Ornstein shouldn't get upset right now. You surely noticed that he is hurt. It would be very convenient if you two could schedule your quarrel at another time.”, the wolf knight said in a casual tone. 

“Yes, just running away.”, Ornstein could hear the voice of the executioner behind them. “You don't even have the guts to face me directly, it seems.”

“Let me go, Artorias. I have to show him.”, Ornstein complained and tried to free himself from the grab of his friend, but ultimately failed. 

“You really shouldn't get upset with an injury like that.”, Artorias said. “And your fights can get really heated.” 

“Ugh.”, Ornstein grumbled, but let himself drag along by Artorias. After a while, they were far enough away from the dungeon. 

“When is the silver knight training again?”, Artorias wanted to know. 

“In the afternoon. Shortly after lunch time.”, Ornstein answered. 

“How about we get something to eat then? And till the training starts, you can rest up a bit.”, Artorias suggested. 

“Seems reasonable.”, Ornstein said. 

After a quick meal and around half an hour of rest, which had been supervised by Artorias to make sure Ornstein wouldn't wander off, the two knights were headed to the training grounds. The silver knights were early this day and already awaited them. “How nice to see that they are early for once.”, Ornstein whispered to Artorias. 

“They probably fear that you could be in a bad mood today.”, Artorias whispered back. 

“What is that supposed to mean?”, Ornstein asked with a slightly annoyed tone. 

“Don't break a sweat about this now, the silver knights are waiting.”, Artorias said. 

“Oh, right...”, Ornstein put his attention on the silver knights who were ready for their training. “Today we are having some freestyle practice.”, Ornstein said. “You can ask me or Artorias about techniques that you struggle with. Otherwise, just practice whatever you feel is needed the most right now.”, he instructed the silver knights. 

The silver knight training went over smoothly a majority of the time. Sometimes one of them would come over and ask for help with a certain technique. Ornstein was in the middle of correcting the stance of a silver knight who complained that the others could easily parry him all the time, when he heard some of the other who were sparring with each other, talk.

“Maybe it was another bird incident?”, one of the silver knights said. 

“You don't really think something weird like this would happen a second time, right?”, the other one answered. 

Ornstein stopped dead in his actions. “Wait here, I will be back shortly.”, he said to the silver knight he was helping out and marched over to Artorias, who was busy showing some of his moves to the silver knights. 

“Artorias, can I talk to you for a moment?”, Ornstein's voice dripped with irritation.

“Oh sure.”, Artorias followed him to a quiet corner. 

“Why do they know about the bird incident?”, Ornstein asked, barely containing his rage. 

Artorias face got pale: “Wait, they promised to not tell you.” 

“They didn't tell me, I just heard them talking about it.”, Ornstein shivered. “I thought we agreed to never talk about this incident to anyone?”

“I am so sorry, Ornstein.”, Artorias said and slouched his shoulders. “They asked me what your problem with birds was and I thought it didn't hurt to tell them. At last then they would know to keep you away from birds whenever they can. It really wasn't in mean spirit.” 

“Artorias, it is hard to stay mad at you when you look like that.”, Ornstein said. “It can't be helped now, cause you already told them, but I really don't want to see this happen another time.”

“Yes, of course. I promise I won't tell anyone anymore about this incident.”, Artorias said. 

“Good, then we can return back to the training.”, Ornstein said and the both of them turned around only to see that the silver knights had stopped all training activities and were chatting with each other. 

“Don't you think the most reasonable explanation is it happened in a duel with Sir Artorias?”

“They usually never duel without spectators.”

“I think it was just an accident. Falling down the stairs or something.”

“Can you imagine our captain falling down the stairs? What has to happen to him to fall down some stairs?”

“Maybe he wasn't fully awake when he descended them.” 

“Or someone wanted to say good morning to him and he got startled because he wasn't expecting them?”

“And what if someone tripped him on purpose?”

“Who should purposefully try to shove the captain down the stairs? He probably just got distracted or something.”

“Distracted by what?”

“I don't know, his crush walking by or something.”

 

“I heard enough.”, Ornstein said and went to intervene the chatting of the silver knights. Some scolding and several assigned double shifts later, they finished off the training and the silver knights were dismissed from the scene. 

“Is there anything else on your agenda today?”, Artorias asked. 

“Normally I would go on patrol but I can't do this without full armour.”, Ornstein said. “I am expected by the master anyway.”

“Alright, cause I plan to go on my patrol for now. We will see us later.” Artorias waved to Ornstein walking away when he stopped and turned around. “And be wary of stairs!”, he shouted.

“Very funny, Artorias!”, Ornstein shouted back, the sarcastic tone in his voice couldn't be overheard. Artorias quickly vanished behind a corner, Ornstein could hear him chuckling. 

Finally, some peace and quiet. Ornstein enjoyed the companionship of his friend, but sometimes it could get exhausting. He made his way back into the cathedral. During training, the head injury had started to slightly hurt more again. He brushed aside the pain and made his way to the room of the master. 

Ornstein raised his hand and knocked on the door. “Who is it?”, came the master's voice from the inside. 

“It is me, Ornstein. You have summoned me.”, Ornstein said and took a step away from the door, which soon was opened by the master, instructing him to come in. 

The moment Ornstein had stepped into the room and Master Gwynfor had closed the door behind them, they dropped the whole act. They embraced each other tightly and their lips met for a long kiss. 

“It's so hard to not be able to do this in public.”, Ornstein said after their lips had separated from each other. 

“I know...”, Master Gwynfor said. “I so often want so badly to touch you, but we have to keep it a secret and you know why...”

“Yes, I know...”, Ornstein said with a sorrowful voice. Their different statuses didn't allow it for them to make their relationship public. “At least we can touch when we are alone.”, he added, still embracing his boyfriend tightly. 

“I know.”, the master said. “And you know what that means? First let us take off your armour.” Master Gwynfor fiddled around and managed to get Ornstein's armour off which fell to the floor with a clank. “And now...”, he said, leading Ornstein to his bed. “You get some rest!”, the master practically forced Ornstein under the blankets, which left the lion knight confused. 

“Master, what...?”, he asked. 

“You are hurt. And you have continued your duties and I am sure you are in pain and in need of some rest.”, Master Gwynfor said and joined Ornstein in bed after getting his own armour off. “And you still haven't told me how you managed to get this injury?”

“Oh well.”, Ornstein started, snuggling up against his boyfriend, who laid an arm around his shoulders. “That is kind of embarrassing...” 

“I won't laugh at you, I promise.”, the master carefully stroked Ornstein's head, ruffling his hair a bit. 

Ornstein didn't answer right away. There was the reason for his accident, caressing him and being concerned about him. How could he say that he had been the reason for him falling down the stairs? That he had been so distracted by the sight of absolute beauty and grace walking by, that he himself had become disgraceful and fell down some stairs? After what felt like a really long while, Ornstein opened his mouth and said: “I got... distracted.”

“Distracted by what?”, the master asked. “And how did you hit your head anyway?” 

“By falling down the stairs...”, Ornstein answered. “I can't tell you what got me distracted, I am sorry. That is too embarrassing. The silver knights tried to find it out the whole day it seems. And Ciaran even guessed right!”

“I guess I just have to ask her then about it?”, the master grinned to Ornstein and said upon seeing the eyes of Ornstein turning wide: “Ah please don't worry, I will respect your wish to keep it a secret.” 

“Thanks, master.”, Ornstein said and snuggled closer to his chest. He just now realized how tired he actually felt. It didn't take long for him to snooze away in the master's touch. 

Gwynfor smiled down upon the sight of his slumbering boyfriend. He released Ornstein's ponytail from the hairband that hold it together and watched the long red curls unfurl all over the place. “Oh, Ornstein, you are always pushing yourself too hard. We just have to make sure that you get the rest you deserve, especially when you insist on continuing your duties when you are injured.”, he whispered and gently stroked Ornstein's head, paying attention to not jostle the wound under the bandages. He could see that it had started to swell and bruise. “This surely hurts more the next day.”, he whispered. Gwynfor made a mental note to ask his sibling Gwyndolin for some pain dulling medicine. For now, he was content to just watch his cute boyfriend sleep. 

Ornstein usually would to start snuggling closer and closer when he fell asleep until it was impossible to not hug him completely. It was one of the things Gwynfor admired so much about him. He put up an act when he wore his armour, acting all tough and prideful, but when they were alone, he showed how soft he actually was. Gwynfor felt a bit sorry that Ornstein had to feel this way, that he just couldn't be himself when he had to act as the dragon slayer. He descended under the blankets so that he could took in the usual sleeping position his boyfriend preferred and continued stroking him the best he could. He wished it could be like this forever. 

After a long while, Ornstein awoke and first felt terribly sorry that he had fallen asleep at his time with the master. How could he just waste their precious time together? The master didn't really seem to be upset, made Ornstein promise that he would rest if the pain got too bad and send him off to his room. He hadn't asked any further questions about the accident which Ornstein was glad about. He made his way to his room and spend the rest of the day there until it was time to go to bed. 

The next day Ornstein realized that he had forgotten to get his helmet from the giant blacksmith. He was rushing through the hallways, wanting to get it before breakfast when he heard a thud behind him. Confused he turned back and saw the master slowly getting up at the base of the stairs, holding a hand before his nose, which looked like it was clearly bleeding.

“Master... what happened?”, Ornstein said hurrying over to aid his boyfriend. 

Master Gwynfor shrugged: “I got... distracted.”

**Author's Note:**

> Be wary of stairs.
> 
> If you liked this work, please consider leaving me a comment and/or check out my other works. Thank you very much.


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